'Exported Nigeria yams weren't rejected'

'Exported Nigeria yams weren't rejected' - Ministerial Aide

Yams harvested for market

By YUSUF GOJE

The Technical Assistant to the Honorable Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on Quality Control and Standardization, Mrs Heather R. Akanni, has adjudged Nigerian yams to be of high quality, debunking claims by some section of the media that the first exported products of yam were rejected due to poor quality.

She stated that: “Nigerian yams were not rejected because of quality, but due to the long period it took to arrive its destination, some of the products got spoiled along the way. Unfortunately, some of the media outfits only chose to harp on a baseless standpoint that they were rejected".

She disclosed that, "the law banning yam export is being reviewed and presently at the second reading stage in the National Assembly”. In ensuring that our yams continue to meet the international standards, she said, clustering of farmers to ensure that only approved certified yam seeds were made available to them is necessary.The ministerial aide reiterated that having quality seeds was not enough because extension services were needed as well to ensure right application by farmers.

Mrs Akanni who was speaking on Tuesday during her interface with an advocacy group at the meeting to finalize advocacy briefs on Agriculture Seeds, held at Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL) Office, Maitama, Abuja, expressed satisfaction with organizers of the event.

Highpoint of the meeting facilitated by PERL was the merger of two advocacy groups working on farmers’ limited participation in agriculture policy making processes and strengthening extension services around seeds.

Comments

Coalition urges COP-27 to fast track advocacy against Climate Change

Participants in a group photograph after the event in Kaduna By EDDY OCHIGBO, A coalition of environmental organizations in Kaduna, under the aegis Extinction Rebellion (XR) - a global movement which seeks to persuade governments to act justly on climate change and ecological emergency - has hosted a pre-COP27, in partnership with Bridge-that-Gap Initiative, to galvanize the campaign against climate change, as the the 27th Conference of Parties slated for Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt kicks off. In an exclusive interview with NATIONAL ACCORD, one the coordinators of the event in Kaduna metropolis, Mr Zinta Akpoko, revealed that COP27, Egypt could become a turning point of the campaign, given that forerunners of the conference have since pledged to relentlessly push to prioritize climate financing for developing nations. "The effect of climate change is very evident and we need to be very frank by telling the truth about the inherent dangers tha...

'Terrorists are all over, not only Southern Kaduna'

-Governor Nasir el-Rufai el-Rufai addressing Journalists in Hausa after a security meeting on Southern Kaduna By DANGWA DANJUMA G overnor Ahmed Nasir el-Rufai has admitted that terrorists are everywhere in Kaduna state, not only in the troubled Southern Kaduna, disclosing that miscreants have taken to the social media space to promote what he called disturbing and further aggravating the worsening situation situation with religious and ethnic colouration. Speaking to newsmen in Hausa, after a meeting with security officials, el-Rufai said that miscreants from Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt and outside Nigeria are trying to insinuate that the Southern Kaduna killings is ethnic and religious even going as far as asking people to take the law into their hands. While maintaining that these people would be brought to book, he tasked traditional leaders, religious leaders and political office holders in the state to speak the truth about the happenings as failing to do so wo...

Expert advocates for prudence and and accountability in Treasury Management

By EDDY OCHIGBO L ack of efficient and prudent treasury management in the country have been identified as the source of fraud and sharp practices in nation's public and private sector. Dropping the hint during a breakfast meeting with Correspondents in Kaduna during the week, the Registrar and Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Treasury Management of Nigeria, Mr Adedoyin Olumide, reiterated that poor treasury management remains the bane of public and private finance utilization in the country, calling for greater synergy among all professionals in accounting, banking and finance. He disclosed tha...

Climate Action: Hope rises for Kaduna!

A multi-stakeholder project to plant 10 million economic trees in Kaduna state in the next six years is in the works towards enhancing the state's vegetal cover, in accordance with the renewed global campaign against climate change. Head, Social and Enterprise Development of the Coalition of Associations for Leadership, Peace, Empowerment and Development (CALPED), Dangwa Abbas Danjuma who dropped the hint during the week in Kaduna while on a courtesy visit to the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization, explained: "The Coalition is interested in driving a multi-stakeholder project to plant 10 million economic trees in Kaduna State on or before the end of the year 2025, this is towards re-greening Kaduna. We desire to do so across local governments in the state to empower citizens to take action against deforestation through community based groups with a sustainability plan to develop a robust value chain to improve livelihoods." While apprec...

Kaduna IDPs cry out over Deplorable Conditions

By DANGWA DANJUMA L ack of basic education, sanitation, healthcare facilities and access to portable water supply have hit Gwagwada, a host community camping over 300 households displaced from fifteen villages in Chikun Local Council of the state. Speaking at the flag off of relief materials distribution for the internally displaced persons (IDPs), the Village Head of Gadani, Mr Bitrus Tsauri disclosed: “Since they arrived, the wells which have been the sure source of water for several households in the community have dried up; the solar powered borehole is only providing drips of water necessitating most residents to seek drinking water from streams. Our two public primary schools and healthcare facility are currently inadequate and may be unsafe, especially with the coronavirus pandemic that Kaduna state is still counting cases”. He confirmed that those who can farm, have been provided land to start over again; there is still the worry however, for those who are unable to farm due t...

Cubinks NEWS

Search This Blog